Coming off a 70-65 upset win over the No. 3 ranked and SEC Regular Season champion Auburn Tigers Saturday, the Vols are back in action Sunday with a chance to win their second SEC Tournament championship in four years. As the No. 4 seed that just beat the top seed in the event, they are riding high with confidence.
UT, ranked No. 8 in the AP Poll and No. 6 in the Coaches Poll, is playing in its fourth title game over the past seven league tournaments after playing in just two from 1980 to 2017. Rick Barnes’ team, which went 12-6 in SEC play during the regular season, comes into the game with a 27-6 overall record.
Facing off against the Vols will be the Florida Gators, the No. 2 seed in the tourney with a 14-4 regular season record. At 29-4 overall, Todd Golden’s team comes into this game ranked No. 4 in both polls. Here is all the information you need for Sunday’s matchup.
Tennessee Volunteers vs. Florida Gators
When: Sunday, March 16 at 1 p.m. ET
Where: Bridgestone Arena; Nashville, Tenn.
TV: ESPN
Live stream: WatchESPN
Radio: Vol Network (Click here for affiliates); Gator Radio Network (Click here for affiliates)
Listen online: UTSports; FloridaGators.com
On Saturday, Florida scored a 104-82 blowout win over the Alabama Crimson Tide, who are ranked No. 5 in the AP Poll and No. 8 in the Coaches Poll and were the No. 3 seed in the tourney. Florida beat the Missouri Tigers 95-81 in their first tourney game Friday, while the Vols beat the Texas Longhorns 83-72 that day.
This is a rubber match for the two teams, who split the regular season matchups with blowout wins at home each. Florida, which hasn’t won the SEC tourney since 2014, dominated the Vols 73-43 at home in January when UT was undefeated and ranked No. 1 in the nation. Tennessee then beat Florida 64-44 in Knoxville at the beginning of February.
A potential No. 1 seed could be in play. Florida entered the tournament with a projected top seed while Tennessee Basketball seemed locked into a 2-seed. That could still be the case, but after beating Auburn, if the Vols win on Sunday, they’ll have a strong case for their first 1-seed in school history.
If Barnes’ team does win, then Zakai Zeigler and Jahmai Mashack will have won either the SEC Tournament or regular season championship three of their four years playing for the Vols. That combined with an Elite Eight appearance and reaching No. 1 this year would make them the most successful four-year Vols ever when it comes to team success.
